Just What the Doctor Ordered
by alphaellen
Summary: Helena is having a very bad day, but her friend Kate has the perfect perscription


Space:1999 -- Just What the Doctor Ordered

**Just what the doctor ordered**

Helena sat curled at the end of her sofa and stifled another sob.It had been such a horrible day, and she was ravenously hungry, but certain that a trip to the cafeteria would only leave her more disappointed and less able to control her emotions.

What she really wanted right now was a bacon cheeseburger with fried onion rings, a Coca-Cola, a chocolate shake and an ice cream sundae for dessert.Going to the cafeteria to find low fat fruits and vegetables made into creative, colorful dishes would not satisfy these longings.

She had put several old jazz disks on to play.It was comfort music; music she had listened to when cramming for tests in college.It always made her feel better, relaxed her.This time it wasn't working.She still felt rotten.The final straw had been the fight with John.It had been childish, petty, and all her fault.She knew that but couldn't help herself.When he'd walked out she had even thrown a pillow at the closed door.She wanted to throw a temper tantrum, even though she knew it wouldn't resolve a thing.

She closed her eyes and saw visions of filet mignon, chocolate cheesecake and Hershey bars.When the door chimed, she sighed, glad of the distraction, but not wanting company.

She expected it to be John, although she knew she had treated him so badly he was unlikely to return for a while.When she saw that it was Kate she hesitated before letting her in, certain that Kate would misinterpret her mood.She opened the door and returned to her corner of the sofa.

Kate breezed in and looked around Helena's dimly lit quarters."Is Shermeen here yet?"

"Shermeen?" Helena asked blankly."Should she be?"

"I told her to meet me here."Kate flung herself in a chair then truly looked at her friend for the first time."You look like hell."

"Thanks."Helena said dryly.She slouched further down on the sofa and covered her red eyes with her forearm.

"What happened, have you and him been fighting?"

Helena knew quite well who Kate meant by 'him'."It's not what you think."

"Yeah, right."

"It was my fault."

"Oh, Helena--"

"Oh, Kate."Helena had no patience today for an old argument, or anything else for that matter."It may come as a shock to you, but not every male in existence is a tinplated rat bastard like your ex-husband."

That may have been unnecessary, but Helena wasn't pulling punches with anyone today.Through clinched teeth she said."We fought.I picked the fight.He stormed out."

Silence reigned for a moment.Helena lay still, hoping Kate would go away too.Kate watched her friend.It was obvious that she was miserable."What's put you in such a mood?"

Helena sighed and turned over onto her stomach, stretching out full length on the sofa."It's not even my mood," she moaned.

"Come again?" Kate asked, confused.

Another sigh, obviously, she wasn't going to go away.Helena choked back a sharp retort.She tried the truth, no matter how embarrassing or silly it sounded."Bob found a small growth on one of my ovaries during my last medical exam. It's nothing serious, but he felt the birth control injections I've been taking were the most likely cause, and changed me to a different medication-- pills-- that have been giving me horrible mood swings, PMS, cramps, the works."

Kate flashed a quick grin, "I don't suppose you've considered celibacy."

Helena opened one eye and glared at her friend."That's not an option."

"What you need is a good dinner and something to get your mind off of how you feel."

"If you can't find me a cheeseburger and a chocolate shake, don't even bother to try."Helena growled without moving.

"Sorry, I'm all out."

"The food here stinks."

"Hey, you're talking to the base nutritionist here.I'm responsible for that stinking food!"

"Then fix it."

"I'd _like to," Kate replied sharply, beginning to sympathize with John Koenig for a change.An unreasonable Helena was a rare occurrence; something Kate was glad of.Her eyes narrowed."What did you have for lunch?"_

"Lunch?" Helena echoed blankly.

"You didn't have lunch did you?" Kate accused.

Helena's only response was a sigh.

"Okay.You let Shermeen in when she gets here.She really does have just the perfect thing to show you.I'll be back shortly with dinner for all of us."Kate stood and headed for the door.She turned just before opening it."And you _will like it."_

Shermeen arrived minutes later carrying a large white box of the type used to ship supplies from Earth.She was awed by the sight of the always-perfect Dr. Russell lying stretched out on the sofa; barefoot, eyes red and puffy, dressed in a faded black sweatsuit.Helena wasn't in the mood for small-talk, but Shermeen had obviously been warned by Kate to be on her best behavior.She made a politecomment about liking the music that was playing and sat quietly listening and waiting for Kate to return.Helena decided to ignore her and did her best to lose herself in Brubeck's complicated rhythms. 

Kate entered the cafeteria and noticed Koenig sitting by himself toying with his food and looking unhappy.His emotions were always on display.He was a very intense person in everything he did.Perhaps that was one of the reasons Kate didn't quite approve of him, although she had to admit that intensity had saved Alpha on more than one occasion.After experiencing Helena this evening she did feel a small wave of sympathy for him.Instead of heading straight for the kitchen she crossed the dining room and slid into the chair across from Koenig.His face took on a defensive look.

She smiled at him."I just saw Helena.In the kind of mood she's in, retreat was your only option."

He looked relieved."I even made her mad when I _agreed with her," he admitted ruefully._

"Don't worry, she'll get past this.I'm going to get her something to eat."  
"I would have done that, but I was afraid she'd throw it at me," he smiled when he said it, but was more serious than joking.

"Well, I don't think she'll throw it at me.She needs to eat something." Kate watched him as he shoved his food from one side of the plate to the other."And so do you."She added gently, "She'll be all right, John."

Koenig grinned.Very few people called him by his first name, and Kate never had.He didn't look up from his plate, but he spoke quietly to her."I know you don't exactly approve of me, Kate, but I do love her and I worry about her.Tell her-- well tell her whatever you think might make her feel better.I'm at a loss-- but I'm not mad at her."

Kate nodded."I'll tell her -- something."Koenig looked at her sharply.Kate grinned."Trust me!"She slid out of the chair and headed for the kitchen.It was the longest, most civil conversation she had ever had with Koenig, but she didn't want to ruin her reputation as a rebel.

She chose noodles with a spicy tofu and tomato sauce topping and a sweet pudding that also had a high protein soy base.She added a pitcher of mixed fruit juice and a small salad with imitation cheese.Knowing her friend's eating habits, the meal probably had more protein than Helena had eaten over the last week.She packed up the trays and headed back to Helena's place, smiling as she thought about Shermeen's discovery.

Kate swept into Helena's and took charge before Helena could protest, calling her to the dinner table, and brooking no complaints about the food set before her.Kate took getting her off the sofa as a major accomplishment.Shermeen was puzzled, but hadn't eaten and joined the other two at the table.

Kate dug into her own supper and glanced at Helena when she hesitated over her own."Shermeen, tell Helena about your discovery."

Shermeen's eyes lit up and she flashed a smile at Kate and Helena."I should have found it ages ago.I don't know why I didn't."

"Found what, Shermeen?" Helena asked, more because Kate obviously wanted her to know than any real curiosity on her part.

"I was looking through a storage area in Hydroponics to see if we had some spare parts for one of the growth accelerators.I'd looked before, for the very same parts, so I was digging a little deeper.Behind some of the equipment that had been packed away since Mateo's death was that case.It looks like he had just gotten the green light for a privately subsidized experiment just before Breakaway.The date on the case is August 15, 1999."

"What were they planning to grow?" Helena asked.

"Cacao trees."Shermeen said with a smile.

Helena's eyebrows went up and she glanced from Kate to Shermeen."Cacao -- as in chocolate?"

Kate grinned."As in chocolate," she confirmed.

Shermeen brought the case over to the table and opened it.Coccooned among the styrofoam packing were a half dozen clear plastic bags each containing small round seeds of various colors.They looked almost like beads.The seeds in one bag were deep purple. Another bag held seeds that were white.Others were more the shade of aged ivory.Still others were lavender.Each bag contained a label with a number.

A folder was attached to the lid of the case.Helena removed it and thumbed through it, eating absently as she read.Kate felt triumphant.She had Helena's interest and had her eating too.

The experiment was sponsored by the American Cocoa Research Institute.Their goals were listed at the beginning of the brochure: as promoting sustainable growth of cacao trees in a wide variety of environments.These seeds were part of a biodiversity experiment spanning the globe.Similar seeds for both varieties of cacao trees, Forastero and the milder Crillo had been disbursed to such varied places as Indonesia, Guatemala, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, Hawaii and Viet Nam.Trinitario trees were a hybrid and seedlings would be grown in controlled circumstances in a hot house in Mexico and shipped to the research sites at a later date.Alpha was a control site and was to grow the seeds in what was considered optimum conditions.Detailed instructions were included for each site, but Helena concentrated on the instructions for the Alphan seeds.

She glanced up at Shermeen."Can you grow these?" 

"They've given me extremely detailed instructions for ideal growing conditions.I think I could probably force grow them twice as fast as that experiment allows."

Helena had noticed that this was a long term experiment.It would be five years before a mature crop would be ready from these seeds.

Kate leaned forward."We could all use a bit of extra fat in our diets.Right now, we have virtually no fat of any kind-- no meats at all and the small amounts of vegetable fats just aren't the same.You aren't the first person to tell me how bad the food is.No matter how hard my people and I try, it isn't always very satisfying."

Helena smiled and shook her head, "Kate, you of all people should know you don't have to convince me that chocolate on Alpha would be a good thing."

Shermeen looked at her seriously, "The thing is, Helena, I don't have the space to grow them.This would be a long-term project, and the trees will be large.I don't currently have any place to put them."

"Helena, we want to apply to the science board to use some of the catacombs to grow the cacao trees." Kate lay all her cards on the table."We want you to sponsor us."

Helena smiled."I think you'll do fine even without my sponsorship.Besides, I'm not exactly on John's good side right now."

Shermeen's eyes grew wide with surprise.

"Nonsense, Helena."Kate reassured her friend."I just saw him in the cafeteria.He said to tell you he hopes you feel better and he'll check on you tomorrow.He said he worries about you when you don't feel well."

Helena looked surprised."He told you that?"

"Yes, he did," she replied.

Helena looked a little dazed, but pleased.She turned to Shermeen."Write up your proposal, what you need and how you plan to proceed.Let me look it over and I'll consider adding my name to it."

Shermeen grinned and reached into her pocket for a data disk."Kate said you'd want that.It's all here."

Helena took the disk and looked down at her dinner, surprised to see she had eaten it all.Kate packed up the dishes and shooed Shermeen out."Thanks, Helena.Now you get some rest.I'll send over some breakfast in the morning.Be sure you eat it."

Helena sighed but smiled, "Yes, Dr. Goldberg."

Kate grinned.Phd's were so common on Alpha that only medical doctors were accorded that title."I like the sound of that.Mom would be so proud," she said, joking.With a wave she left the room, leaving Helena alone again.

The meal and a night's rest left Helena feeling better, but she decided to remain on sick call another day to regain her emotional equilibrium.She knew that if she were needed for an emergency of some kind John or Bob would contact her anyway.

She slept late, and found a tray with breakfast on her table when she woke up.She wondered how Kate had managed that, but knew her friend to be a resourceful person so wasn't particularly surprised.

Shermeen's research proposal was detailed, but concise and to the point.The young botanist was very good at planning and carrying out projects such as this, and also had a good feeling for her work.Despite the fact that she had ended up on Alpha by accident-- a teen at Breakaway on a field trip to view Alpha's research facilities-- her passion for botany had been a boon for Alpha when their botany/hydroponics section had been decimated because of a dangerous mystical experiment that Mateo-- recipient of the grant for the cocoa experiment-- had initiated.

Helena looked over the information Shermeen had left her, then did some further research on the computer.She was surprised when her commlock buzzed for attention.She noticed it was almost noon. Kate was undoubtedly continuing her campaign to make sure Helena ate healthy.She was surprised again to see John's face on the screen.

"Are you feeling better?"

"Yes, I am," she smiled almost shyly, not sure how much she wanted to say by commlock, knowing she owed him an apology.

"How about lunch then?" He stepped back and she could see that he was standing in the corridor holding a covered tray.

She pointed her commlock at the door and opened it.John entered hesitantly, as if afraid she would throw him out again.She tucked her bare feet under her and ran her fingers through her hair; much more aware today that she was wearing worn sweats and hadn't bothered to comb her hair.

John deposited the tray on the table, put a second container on the coffee table and joined her on the sofa.He looked her over carefully."You look better today."

She blushed.John's intensity sometimes overwhelmed her."I must look awful."

He pushed a lock of hair from her face and teased her. "You looked worse yesterday, believe me."

"Thanks a lot," she smiled then turned serious."I'm sorry about yesterday.It was all my fault.I was horrid to you."

"It's okay," he said."Everyone has a bad day every once in a while.Fortunately, yours don't come along too often."He pulled her gently into his arms and she relaxed against him.

"I guess I don't deal well with being less than 100% healthy." Her eyes were closed and a tear escaped.She was still a long way from her usual calm control.

He wiped it away gently with his finger."I have the feeling you're more worried about that tumor than you'd like us to believe."

She nodded, eyes still closed.

"It's all right to be scared, you know.You don't have to be tough all the time."

Her response was to put her arms around him, more tears falling.He held her tightly and pulled her into his lap, letting her cry.A man of action, he wanted to _do something.He was grateful for Kate's coaching this morning and he didn't try to make Helena stop crying until she was ready._

Soon enough she sat up and made an effort to pull herself back together.John produced a handkerchief and handed it to her.

"You certainly came prepared, didn't you," she sniffed and smiled at him."We'd better eat so you can get back to work."

"No hurry," John told her.I took the afternoon off."

Helena was stunned."You did?"

"I got the feeling you needed me more than Alpha did today," He didn't mention that he had spent the morning consulting both Bob Mathias and Kate Goldberg about what would make Helena feel better.

She smiled and he could tell that she was delighted.

They ate lunch and returned to the sofa.John had picked out an old movie for them to watch.He had chosen the "Addams Family" which was funny and romantic and diverting enough to allow Helena and him both the chance to relax and escape for a little while.She stretched out on the sofa, her head pillowed on John's thigh.He rubbed her neck and shoulders and fed her the popcorn that Kate had given him.

By suppertime it was time for Helena to face the rest of Alpha before she needed to return to work the next day.He waited while she showered and dressed.He watched her with a tinge of regret, there was something utterly attractive to him about the barefoot, tousled haired girl in sweats who had spent the afternoon on the sofa with him.He knew, however, that she was still there, behind the more professional façade she put on with her uniform.She indicated her readiness with a smile and he caught a glimpse of the girl in her eyes before she steeled herself to exposure to the public.He held her hand as they strolled through the corridors to the dining room.Kate was not ready to return control of Helena's diet to her yet, and a table was already set for them when they arrived.

Helena's eyes narrowed as they approached the table."You and Kate aren't ganging up on me are you?"

John endeavored to look innocent."Helena!You know how Kate feels about me."

Helena had to laugh, "John Koenig, you are the world's worst liar."

"Ah, but fortunately, it's a small world," he teased and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek as he seated her.

Dinner was pleasant and quiet.Others in the cafeteria noted the two in the remote corner and smiled, but gave them some space.Afterwards they strolled through Alpha's halls for a while, ending up in the observation lounge, which, as usual, was deserted.It had long been a favorite retreat for the two of them to watch the stars and talk.They settled onto one of the convenient sofas and stared out at the field of stars.

After a while, Helena told him about Shermeen's discovery and the request she and Kate wanted to make to use some of the catacombs as additional farmland.John questioned the amount of time this would take when Shermeen already have plenty of work to do.He also questioned the amount of resources this would need.

"Why don't you give conditional approval as long as this remains a 'hobby project' like the hops she grows for Tony?"Helena suggested.I expect she should be able to recruit others to help her off duty."

"And if we find a planet and initiate Operation Exodus, what happens then?" John asked.

Helena was quiet for a while, staring out at the stars spread before them through the wide windows."I don't want you to think I've given up hope for that to happen, but how long should we wait before acknowledging the fact that we may be on Alpha for the next ten, twenty or thirty years. I'm sure she could hold back some of the seeds against that possiblity, but don't you think it might be a good idea to begin looking at the long view for living on Alpha?"

John sighed."Are you going to start talking about children?"

Helena shook her head."We've already agreed to disagree about that and I have nothing new to bring to that discussion.I'm talking about making Alpha more of a home for those of us here now.This chocolate project is one of the ways to do that.Let Shermeen and Kate recruit others who are interested and make it a community project."

"Will you volunteer?"

"Me?Heavens no!I'm hopeless around plants.They'll be better off if I stay far away from them."Helena laughed."But I'll be thrilled to eat anything chocolate Kate cares to make."

**The Long View-- three years later**

The ribbon cutting ceremony for the community park was to begin any moment.John Koenig was thinking about the long view of living on Alpha as he looked over at his wife of nearly a year now.She was standing in the crowd talking to Jennifer Crawford and her four-year-old son, Jackie.At the moment, Jackie was still the only child on Alpha, but that would be changing soon.Helena's idea of community projects had been embraced wholeheartedly by the Alphans.Explorers looking for a likely cave to seal and convert to a farming area had found this cavern.Volunteers had used off-duty time to seal it, light it, and haul in lunar soil from the surface.It was reached by a tunnel that was also sealed, lighted and areas next to the pathway were soiled.The cocoa trees in both the tunnel and the cavern were a respectable size and bearing their first fruit.Banana trees also grew in clumps along with other tropical fruits such as mangoes, avocados, kiwi and oranges.

The perimeter of the cavern had been designed as a running track and small individual plots were scattered across the cavern floor, separated by winding pathways.Plenty of people had volunteered to care for a small piece of ground and grow their favorite plants.John himself had a small plot of roses that he enjoyed tending and pruning.Others had donated their time and talents in other ways, fashioning benches or swings or statuary to enhance the garden.There was also a play area set aside for the children the Alphans anticipated having soon and a sandy area for volleyball and a basketball court for the adults.

John's rose garden was home to a waist high statue that Helena had fashioned especially for him.It was St. Exupery's _Little Prince who perpetually looked in awe at John's roses, watering can in hand.Helena claimed there was a spiritual resemblance and John preferred to take that as a compliment._

Although nearly all the Alphans had assisted with the community garden in one way or another this was the official opening.It was an important day in their little community.John stepped up to the red plastic ribbon that had been stretched across the entrance to the park and waited until he had everyone's attention.It didn't take long.

"You all know how much I hate speeches, so I'll keep this brief."He was certain that the burst of enthusiastic applause from the back of the crowd was started by Alan Carter; and he made a mental note to repay the joke in kind."It was suggested to me that we Alphans needed to take the long view of living here."He caught his wife's eye and she smiled at him.She was holding Jackie on her hip and looked quite natural like that.She would make a terrific mother-- soon, he hoped.

"This park exemplifies that effort.As such, I would like to dedicate our community park to the future."He beckoned to Jackie who wiggled out of Helena's arms and ran to his side.John knelt beside him.

"Can we go swing now?" the little boy asked the Commander eagerly.

John grinned."As soon as we cut this ribbon.Want to help?"

The boy nodded his eyes wide as John handed him a large pair of scissors.Together they cut the ribbon and John picked up Jackie and turned to the applause of the crowd."I declare Alpha's Community Park officially open!"

"Let's go swing!" declared the impatient four-year-old.

John laughed and swung Jackie onto his shoulders and headed for the playground to fulfill his promise.Around them the party began in earnest.Helena brought him a small cup of hot cocoa; Kate's first attempt to use the harvested beans.It was a great improvement over what the Alphan's called coffee.

He offered a toast to his wife. "To the long view."

She smiled."The long view," she agreed.

Deep space was still a treacherous and dangerous place, but for this moment, Moonbase Alpha was a good place to call home.

Ellen C. Lindow

March, 1999


End file.
